strategy Archives

Forging a Pathway Into 2023 – Ideas and Innovations from 2040

Forging a Pathway Into 2023 Issue 89, January 5, 2023 Two of the most important qualities we need (personally and professionally) to make good decisions are perspective and context. In order to move forward, both give relevance to how the past informs the present and can be predictive of how to plan for the future. If we take three tenses, we can reflect on what we have learned and how those insights can guide us today and tomorrow. Having said…

Kevin Novak

January 5, 2023

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

Taking Stock – Ideas and Innovations from 2040

Taking Stock Issue 88, December 29, 2022 One could argue that January 1 is an arbitrary date to evaluate the past 12 months. We routinely like to look back to the past calendar year, determine what went well and reflect on what we wanted to change. We view January 1 as a fresh start to tackle our procrastination, fix things that are broken, generally refresh, and forge a committed pathway forward. We all know that for many, these reflections, decisions,…

Kevin Novak

December 28, 2022

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

Is Your Organization Ready to Comply with Privacy Protections? – Ideas and Innovations from 2040

Is Your Organization Ready to Comply with Privacy Protections? Issue 84, December 1, 2022 A wise man once told us when thinking about a significant life event, “We can be prepared, but we’ll never be ready.” So, it may be a stretch to connect mortality with privacy laws, but we would argue that most organizations are neither prepared nor ready to deal with the privacy changes at the state level in the United States and countrywide in many countries around…

Kevin Novak

December 1, 2022

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

Back to Basics – Ideas and Innovations from 2040

Back to Basics Issue 82, Nov 17, 2022 How often have we been reminded to get back to basics? We live in an overprogrammed, overcommunicated, overstimulated world. Recently several cultural threads caught our attention, and when combined, remind us of how the basics in art and culture can have a positive effect on ourselves, our workplace, the organizational community, and society writ large in counterpoint to high-tech. Although we have been seduced to worship technology over the past few decades,…

Kevin Novak

November 15, 2022

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

Uncertainty and Disruption: Ideas and Innovations from 2040

Uncertainty and Disruption Issue 78, Oct 20, 2022 You know something’s happening, but you don’t know what it is. Your competition is edging ahead. Your stakeholders are ambivalent. Your workforce is listless. Your management team is exhausted. Nothing that worked before is working now. You’re not alone. High performance in disruptive markets puts everyone to the test and on edge. Old strategies don’t work because conditions have changed. Managing a remote workforce with traditional management tactics doesn’t work because they’re…

Kevin Novak

October 29, 2022

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

The Shape of Things to Come – Ideas + Innovations from 2040

The Shape of Things to Come Issue 79: Oct 27, 2022 As we contemplate the end of another year, now is a good time to revisit the opportunities and shortfalls of technology. And to clear up some popular theories that may be losing ground. As we have said many times, technology is no panacea or silver bullet, it is simply a tool to augment our intelligence, make our solutions smarter and help us measure what matters in a way that…

Kevin Novak

October 26, 2022

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

What Role Do You Play? – Ideas + Innovations from 2040

What Role Do You Play? Issue 72: Sept 8, 2022 Here’s a real-life scenario. Recently there has been friction and dissension within a management team. Managers are struggling to help manage a disruptive economy, guide strategy in an ambiguous marketplace, rein in a headstrong CEO that is resisting authority, and manage multiple powerplays among members who believe they have all the answers or who are afraid to reveal themselves and what they don’t know. This is not a fictional drama…

Kevin Novak

September 7, 2022

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

To Be Forewarned Is to Be Forearmed – Ideas + Innovations from 2040

To Be Forewarned Is to Be Forearmed Issue 64: July 14, 2022 The savvy, experienced executives are curious, informed, and naturally anticipate the future, not catch up to it. That usually requires these individuals to step out of their comfort zones and confront ambiguity and change head-on. They support their teams and coach them to think critically and stretch to maintain high performance, both individually and for the organization. This may sound obvious, but in our experience, we have encountered…

Kevin Novak

July 14, 2022

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

2022 Mid-Year Prediction: Unintended Consequences – Ideas + Innovations from 2040

2022 Mid-Year Prediction: Unintended Consequences Issue 61: June 23, 2022 Over the past two years in discussions with clients and the 2040 team, I have continued to raise the point that “ it ain’t over until the lady sings.” Many have already sung with sighs of relief and many more have yet to sing. In either case, the songs increase anxiety and confusion when the last notes are ambivalent, and the outcome is not assured. The Center Will Not Hold…

Kevin Novak

June 23, 2022

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

Always Start with a Strategic Premise – Ideas + Innovations from 2040

Always Start with a Strategic Premise Issue 60: June 16, 2022 You’ve developed an aspirational strategic plan that is going to help you crush it compared to your competitors and allow the organization to expand its customer base and be more relevant to existing customers. The direction of the plan and its goals seem to address the declining performance of existing business lines and offerings by developing a new model. You’ve worked on it, honed it, and vetted it with…

Kevin Novak

June 16, 2022

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